What are you going to miss?

Someone asked me, "What are you going to miss most about Philadelphia when you leave?" A tough but important question. Although I have traveled around a huge city, figured out its transportation system, met and networked with several individuals, fought for the starting of Community Schools in lower income neighborhoods, and I have grown personally and professionally there is one thing I am going to miss. The thing I am going to miss the most about Philadelphia is the...Food. 

A wise professor once said, “Food, in the end, in our own tradition, is something Holy... It’s about sharing. It’s about honesty. It’s about identity.” 

This quote couldn’t be more true. This summer I have jumped into a new experience with new individuals and new perspectives. I have eaten my way around the city with different people and friends. I have experienced the hustle in Reading Terminal trying new food until I couldn’t eat any longer. I have cooked food outside at the Schuylkill Center with teenagers across the city in the Teens4Good program who work all summer planting and harvesting an urban garden. I have literally picked food from a dumpster with my fellow interns to realize how wasteful we are as a society and turn that food into meals for my roommate and I. I have attended a #right2work dinner series at South Philly Barbacoa to spread awareness about workers in the food industry who are the backbones of many kitchens across the Philadelphia area. I especially enjoyed meals in the neighborhood park getting to know my fellow interns by sharing stories and ideas over a lunch break when we are all together.

Sharing. Honesty. Identity.

It is bringing together the of sharing stories, being honest in who we are, and identifying ourselves and our personalities through the enjoyment and surrounding of food and people.

Food. 

That is what I am going to miss.